Episode 35: The Spartan Mayor
After over a week of travelling, Niko and his friends finally arrived at Opelucid City. The city itself looked oddly futuristic, with the buildings taking on a technological, even business-like appearance. Niko and his friends walked in to the city, immediately making their way to the Pokémon Center to find a place to rest up and stay during their time there. If everything went as planned—and Niko defeated Drayden, the gym leader of the city—then they would be there a single night, and be off towards wherever the final Pokémon gym in Unova was.
That night, Niko thought about the events since his last gym battle, back in Mistralton City against Skyla. His team looked different then. He didn't have Litwick, and Rufflet and Solosis had evolved. Whatever type Drayden used, he was sure to be prepared for it. Niko looked over to see Servine, Braviary, Boldore, Duosion, Tynamo, and Litwick all sleeping peacefully. Smiling, Niko then went to sleep, thinking about what else he could do to prepare for the gym battle.
The following morning, Niko was the first awake. After returning his Pokémon and creeping out of their room, he went to the practice battlefield to do some last-minute training.
An hour into it, Niko saw Warren and Charlotte walk out onto the battlefield as well, just as Braviary dodged an attack from Servine before launching an attack of his own. For several minutes they just stood there and watched.
"Yeah, he's back." Warren said.
"Was he ever gone?"
"Not really, but he was pretty down the other day. That's all I'm saying. Think he has a chance at winning?"
"He always does. My book didn't say anything about the specialty of this gym, for whatever reason. But it's safe to say that Niko has most types covered with his team, so he'll have an advantage regardless."
"That's true. Hey, Niko!" Warren said, beckoning his friend over. "When're we going to the gym today?"
"In a little bit, if you all are fine with that." Niko suggested. When Warren gave him a thumbs up, he continued on.
After eating, Niko and his friends went in search of the Opelucid City Gym. As it turned out, the gym was in the northwestern part of the city, on the outskirts. And while the city was more modern and refined, the Opelucid Gym was the opposite.
It was a brick structure that resembled a circus tent, only without the colors and flair to go along with it. Instead, it was pointed at all edges, and two dragon heads—one white, and one black—stood on each side of the entrance. In the middle was the traditional Pokémon League symbol: a pokéball.
"So…dragon type." Niko said as they looked at the exterior of the gym. "This gym is dragon type."
"Is that a problem? Your Pokémon are plenty strong!"
"Dragons are something else, Warren." Niko said, turning to his friend. "I've never done well against dragons, even when I have an advantage." He said, tacitly referencing his battles against Clair, Fay, and most recently Palmer.
"Well, you will this time for sure!" Warren said optimistically, patting Niko on the back. "Let's go!"
When they approached the gym, the entrance was wide open, only leading to a darkened tunnel. Confused, Niko led the way inside, watching various torches being lit along the way, as if there was some sort of pressure plate or sensor that was lighting them as he walked through. Ultimately, they reached a large room with a battlefield in the center. Torches lit the room all around it, with flood lights at the top to add to the glow. In the front, back, and sides of the room were more statues of dragon heads.
Niko looked out in amazement as he eyed each one. It had been a long time since he was in a dragon-type gym. As he marveled at the battlefield around him, he heard someone walk in from the other end of the field. It was tall, gray-haired man in a rolled-up white dress shirt with navy blue overalls that had golden spikes on the shoulder pieces. He wore his hair slicked to the side, and had navy blue gloves on.
"Afternoon." He said in a deep voice. "I'm Drayden, the gym leader for Opelucid City. And…you are?"
"Niko from Pallet Town." Niko said proudly. "I'm here for a gym battle."
"Of course. As it happens, I'm free today. How does a four-on-four Pokémon battle sound to you?"
"Just fine."
"Very well, then." Drayden snapped his fingers, which produced a louder sound than Niko expected. Suddenly, a referee ran down the same stairs Drayden had just moments before, and got into position at the middle of the battlefield. "We begin whenever you're ready."
"I'm ready now." Niko said, pulling out a pokéball. He knew who he wanted to use first.
"Good. Druddigon, I choose you!" Drayden shouted, summoning his first Pokémon. It was unfamiliar to Niko. Druddigon was a large, blue dragon Pokémon with medium-sized wings that were the shape of thistle-leaves. It had a bright red head, and red spikes running along its tail. Its belly was an olive color. Most noticeably was its stance—it's arms were longer than its legs, which gave it a hunchback impression. "Your turn."
"Litwick, I choose you!" Niko shouted. "Will-o-wisp!"
"Druddigon, crunch." Drayden commanded. The Cave Pokémon charged forward, taking the will-o-wisp as if it didn't seem to care, ultimately landing its attack on Litwick. Druddigon bit down hard into Litwick's waxy body, ultimately flinging her behind it. "Now, dragon tail!" Druddigon's tail began to glow bright purple as it took flight to strike at the falling Litwick.
"Hex!" Niko shouted, noticing the burn mark on Druddigon's face. Litwick quickly conjured a black and blue sphere and launched it upwards at an angle. It impact with Druddigon's tail, creating an explosion that was forceful enough to launch the Cave Pokémon upwards. "Now, hex again!"
"Rock slide!" Drayden commanded, his hands still in his pockets. Druddigon summoned a downwards moving wave of rocks in varying sizes, which Litwick barely made it out of due to hex being strong enough to strike Druddigon directly in the chest, minimizing the damage done. "Dragon tail once more!"
"Litwick, hex!" Niko shouted. He tried not to continuously order the same move—it was sort of lame, in his mind—but he hardly had a choice. Plus, hex was stronger due to Druddigon's burn. Nevertheless, Druddigon finally landed a move, crashing down onto Litwick just as she launched a hex, sending the Cave Pokémon across the field before crumpling to the ground as well. "Can you get back up, buddy?"
Litwick tried to, taking her time to gather up enough energy. Eventually, though, she couldn't, and collapsed back onto the ground in front of Drayden, while Druddigon got back up in front of Niko.
"Litwick is unable to battle, Druddigon is the winner!" The referee declared. "Challenger Niko will now send out his second Pokémon!"
"Litwick, return." Niko said, pulling out a pokéball. "You did great, buddy. We'll work harder next time. Braviary, I choose you!" Niko shouted, summoning his Valiant Pokémon. "Let's start off with aerial ace!"
Braviary rose high into the air before diving down at Druddigon, who had returned to Drayden's side of the field, waiting for his next opponent. Drayden commanded it to use rock slide, and it did once Braviary was close enough. However, due to Niko's training, Braviary was able to weave through the dozens of rocks hurtling down towards him, eventually hitting Druddigon in the chest and dragging it across the remainder of the field.
"Air cutter!" Niko shouted. Braviary backed away for a moment and slashed his wings forward, slamming Druddigon with a series of "x" shaped blades from the tips of his wings. Druddigon collapsed to one knee, wincing from the attack. "Hone claws!" Niko commanded. Braviary scratched at the ground with his talons, sharpening them while Druddigon got back to its feet. "Now, aerial ace!"
Braviary charged forward, slamming into Druddigon and dragging it past Drayden and into the stairwell that he came from, swooping back into the air with his defeated opponent laying there.
"Druddigon is unable to battle, Braviary is the winner! Leader Drayden will now send out his second Pokémon!" The referee declared.
"Druddigon, return. Altaria, I choose you!" Drayden called out, summoning a familiar Pokémon to Niko.
"Altaria…Niko probably knows what that Pokémon is like." Warren said, remembering that his friend has traveled more extensively than he used to know. "Go Niko!"
"Braviary, be careful…Altaria aren't what they seem." Niko said cautiously. Braviary nodded. "Now, use aerial ace!"
"Altaria, fire blast!" Drayden commanded. Altaria opened its mouth and belted out a five-pointed flame at Braviary, who dodged the move before diving towards his new opponent. When the Valiant Pokémon was closing in, Drayden called out once more. "Cotton guard!" Altaria opened its wings wide and then covered its face with them, buffering against the impact of Braviary's attack. "Now, dragon pulse!"
Now, Altaria opened its wings again, revealing its face once more. It unleashed a powerful purple beam of energy that hit Braviary directly in the face, knocking him backwards through the air before he crashed into the ground. Drayden then finally asked Altaria to use fire blast, which managed to hit Braviary directly in the chest, leaving a rather large burn mark.
"Aerial ace!" Niko said, albeit hesitantly. He knew Braviary had more in him, but he didn't like having to go all out like this, especially if it seriously injured his Pokémon. Nevertheless, Braviary slammed into Altaria, who deflected once more with cotton guard before repeating the dragon pulse. It's like nothing changed…Niko thought to himself, frustrated that he didn't seem to learn the lesson Brycen taught to him. And now Braviary was on the verge on defeat. "Keep it up!" He said. "Use air cutter this time!"
"Altaria, block it with fire blast!" Drayden shouted. Altaria obliged, belting out another fire attack that seemed to disintegrate Braviary's light blue air-blades. "Now, dragon pulse!"
"Aerial ace!" Niko shouted. He realized that if Braviary was going to go down, he might as well try to bring Altaria with him. The Valiant Pokémon and the Humming Pokémon collided just as the latter used dragon pulse, repelling the former and sending him into the ground once more.
"Braviary is unable to battle, Altaria is the winner! Challenger Niko will send out his third Pokémon!"
"Braviary, return. You did great. I'm really proud of you. Boldore, I choose you!"
"Hmm…interesting choice, Niko. Altaria, sing!"
"Boldore, smack down!" Niko commanded, just as Altaria began to belt out a sweet, soothing melody. The attack landed successfully, with the golden orb associated with smack down hitting Altaria in the wing, slamming her into the ground forcefully. "Now, rock…slide…?" Niko said hesitantly as he noticed Boldore had fallen asleep. "Alright, fair enough." He said, trying to think of something else. After shouting at his Pokémon a few times, the Ore Pokémon finally woke up, turning his head to each side before realizing Niko was the one responsible.
"Altaria, dragon pulse!" Drayden commanded for the second time. The first one had successfully hit Boldore while he was asleep, and the second was about to when Boldore blocked it with a smack down. "Sing!"
"Boldore, rock slide!" Niko shouted. Just as the Ore Pokémon managed to pelt a grounded Altaria with an avalanche of rocks, he fell victim once more to his opponent's beautiful singing voice. Fortunately for him and Niko, Altaria was defeated by the final rock slide.
"Altaria is unable to battle, Boldore is the winner!" The referee declared. "Leader Drayden will now use his third Pokémon!"
Niko noticed Drayden fiddling around with Altaria's pokéball, as if deep in thought. It was clear he was trying to think of some new strategy. Smirking under his gray beard, he pulled out a third pokéball.
"Flygon, I choose you!" Drayden commanded. Out of his third pokéball was another familiar Pokémon to Niko—and one he quite admired. "Use earth power!"
"Oh…no…" Niko said as the ground under Boldore forcefully shook, ultimately launching the sleeping Ore Pokémon into the air, forcing him to land on the ground in defeat.
"Geez…one shot…" Warren said. "Think Niko's fought one of these before?"
"Probably, yeah." Charlotte said. "They're native to Hoenn anyway. And…it wasn't necessarily a one-shot attack, since Altaria did damage as well."
"Right, of course." Warren said, watching his friend withdraw Boldore in exchange for his final Pokémon. "He's got Duosion, Tynamo, and Servine left…"
"Servine!" Niko commanded, throwing out the pokéball containing his first Unova Pokémon. "Use leaf tornado!"
"Earth power!" Drayden commanded.
"Wait for it, Servine…" Niko said cautiously. "We've dealt with this before, right? Now…jump!" Servine leapt into the air just as the earth power struck underneath her. "Now, leaf blade!"
Servine landed back on the ground post-earth power, and dashed towards Flygon with a speed Niko hardly recognized. It was clear to him that she missed battling…a lot. The Grass Snake leapt through the air, somersaulting before landing a glowing green tail on Flygon's head, and with enough force to crash both of them into the ground.
"Rock slide!" Drayden commanded.
"Leaf blade on the rocks!" Niko shouted. Servine, obliging, aggressively slashed and cut at the rocks hurtling towards her. Just then, Flygon opened its maw and unleashed a dragon pulse that hit Servine in the side of the body, launching her across the battlefield and landing just at Niko's feet. "Hey…c'mon, we can do this. If we beat Flygon, we have only one left. You're strong enough to carry the day here, alright?"
Servine nodded in agreement, flashing Niko a smug smile before turning to face her opponent.
"Now, leaf tornado!" Niko commanded. Servine flipped through the air, shooting a flurry of sharp leaves from her tail at Flygon, who repelled it with dragon pulse. "Leaf blade, and at the air this time!"
"Huh?" Warren and Charlotte said in unison. Servine, equally confused, obliged all the same, flipping through the air while running at Flygon, slashing her tail around. Soon enough, she felt herself moving a bit quicker.
"Now!" Niko shouted. Servine then, using the momentum she created for herself, spun around and slapped Flygon across the face with leaf blade, forcing the Mystic Pokémon into the ground. "Leaf tornado!"
Servine landed on the ground once more before somersaulting and launching a final flurry of leaves at the defeated Flygon, ensuring her victory.
"Flygon is unable to battle, Servine is the winner!" The referee declared. "Leader Drayden will now use his final Pokémon!"
"Well done, Niko. Dragons are tough to beat, but you've done pleasantly well here. I commend you for that, but I'm afraid your Servine won't last much longer. Haxorus, I choose you!" Drayden shouted, summoning a now familiar dragon Pokémon. The Axe Jaw Pokémon peered down at Servine menacingly. "Use dragon dance!"
Niko froze at the command. Dragon…dance…? He thought to himself. No…no no. "Servine, be careful!"
As soon as Servine heard this, Haxorus began to glow bright purple and red, roaring towards the heavens as it did so. Servine, having never heard such a cry before, backed away a little in fear. She turned to Niko for assurance, but he couldn't seem to provide it.
"Haxorus, use x-scissor!" Drayden shouted. The Axe Jaw Pokémon's claws began to glow a bright red as it charged down Servine. The Grass Snake leapt out of the way, fortunately dodging the attack, but it didn't stop her powerful opponent. Haxorus turned towards her again, blood lust in its eyes. "Again!"
"Servine, defensive leaf tornado!" Niko shouted. Servine nodded, bringing up a wall of leaves to protect herself. For the first time, it didn't work. Haxorus ignored the leaves hitting it and slashed at Servine, launching her into the stands behind her. She crumpled to the ground, quickly defeated by Haxorus.
"Servine is unable to battle, Haxorus is the winner! The victory goes to Leader Drayden of the Opelucid City Gym!" The referee declared.
Drayden returned Haxorus to its pokéball while Niko ran to pick Servine up. He looked at her, lying unconscious in his arms.
"I hesitated…and we failed because of it…I'm sorry, Servine." Niko said, just as Warren and Charlotte joined his side.
"Niko." Drayden said, still standing in his spot. "If you wish to earn the Legend Badge, I recommend you go into the mountains just north of here. Train there, and then come back to me. I will rematch you whenever you are ready."
Niko simply nodded, too focused on Servine to do much else.